Visit the Chazen Museum and See the Permanent Collection

by Selin Gok, age 16

When Free Press reporters decided to check out the Chazen Museum of Art in Madison, I was thrilled. As a consistent museum goer, I am impressed by the Chazen’s vast art collection and recent building expansion.

The Chazen collection has grown over the years. The Museum now owns 20,000 works of art. Most of these were donated by private collectors and organizations. Recent building expansion added 22,500 square feet of gallery space, allowing works that were once kept in the Chazen’s storage room to be shown in a new permanent collection exhibit.

The museum’s expansion was funded by Simona and Jerome Chazen, UW-Madison alumni, who donated $25 million for the University of Wisconsin’s “Create the Future: The Wisconsin Campaign.” Thanks to several other gifts, the Chazen was able to fund the $43 million building project.

The Chazen’s permanent collection includes works from ancient times, to 16th century European art, and modern day works by artists such as Mark Rothko. As I walked through the galleries, I noticed the rooms were divided by genres of historical, modern, and contemporary art.

Among my favorite pieces were a 13th century limestone sculpture of “Shakti with Two Female Attendants,” a 1914 oil painting of “Children Dancing on the Strand” by George William Russell, a 1998 digitally produced photographic print called “WireHeader” by Deena Des Rioux, and a 1943 tempera painting on hardboard titled “Lady in a Cage” by Sylvia Fein.

The Chazen exhibits many more works than it did before. I highly recommend visiting the permanent collection spaces. The museum is open Tuesday—Friday from 9am to 5pm and Saturday and Sunday from 11am to 5pm Admission to all galleries and educational events is free. For more information, go to www.chazen.wisc.edu, or call (608)263-2246.

Posts like this brgiethn up my day. Thanks for taking the time. – Andrea, Posts like this brgiethn up my day. Thanks for taking the time.(2014-01-05 15:01)